The Elpis Snowstorm
In late January 2022, Greece was hit by a wave of extreme weather conditions (dubbed “Elpis”), which caused heavy snowstorms even in the Aegean islands. Snow first fell in the north of Attica’s district, while lower elevations were affected by the second wave of snowfall (a few days later). Specifically, Macedonia’s lowlands, Thrace, Thessaly, and the Eastern Continent’s northern regions.
Within a few hours following the arrival of the first snowfall, settlements such as Echinos, Centaur, Prosilio, Pachni, and the Stavroupoli area were wrapped in white, with snow covering roads, automobiles, and roofs of houses. Later in the northern Aegean, in Evia, eastern Thessaly, eastern Sterea, and gradually in the eastern Peloponnese and the entire southern Aegean to Crete and the Dodecanese, the same situation occurred.
The crisis escalated quickly with severe consequences. The consequences were first, a power outage, despite the fact that the smooth reopening of schools and the prospect of electricity “even in the tiniest village” were at the center of the meeting of officials. The most serious one was that people were trapped on Attiki Odos(24/1) for almost a day and the authorities failed to release them on time. Residents, later plaintiffs, who were stuck on Attiki Odos for hours requested a total of 128,000 euros in compensation for the significant hardships they suffered when confined in the cold and snow for hours with no help or updates. “None of the authorities reacted to the trapped people’s calls,” according to the lawsuit, “resulting in the release, which took place after many hours, being made possible by individual actions, which ultimately led to the absence of serious injuries.
Before the escalation of the crisis, the government had taken the following measures: residents of Magnesia, the Sporades, Fthiotida, Evia, the northern Cyclades, and Lemnos received a message via the emergency number 112, warning them of significant snowfall in the coming 48 hours and asking them to avoid unnecessary travel. The schools were also closed for two days and there was a general suspension of media routes and the closing of major avenues, in order to prevent unnecessary travel and accidents.
However, not every preventive measure had the result that was expected. During the crisis’ intensification, according to statements from the Ministry of Climate Crisis & Civil Protection, on the night of Monday 24/1, there was an attempt to release people who were stranded on the Attiki Odos route, with the help of all civil protection services; roughly 3,500 people, and 1,800 cars. The few that were rescued on time were at some point given medical attention, as well as free stay in hotel accommodations.
Efforts of releasing trapped people persisted in the days that followed. Those who remained stranded at the airport were taken to central Athens and other safe locations in the Attiki Odos area by the suburban railway. Also, during the power outage, which was also not prevented in multiple areas, the Civil Protection and fire departments sent two helicopters to HEDNO to help with damage assessment. With 4000 people on foot and 900 vehicles, the Greek police supplied any assistance they could. The situation escalated to last for days, even with such effort centered on resolving it effectively.
After the escalation of the crisis, there was monetary compensation to citizens by the government, after a huge wave of complaints, lawsuits, and failed aid practices (e.g. coupons for food that didn’t function to those who were trapped, the promise of immediate release, etc.). The amount of money that was decided on, however, still was not considered enough by the citizens for the emotional trauma they experienced, as well as the general inconvenience of being stranded. After the crisis, a general dissatisfaction burst out amongst Greek citizens, both in terms of urban traffic and on social media, with the outrage expressed towards the government taking weeks to subside.
There are a few yet critical factors that led to this disappointing development. The situation on Attica’s highways was handled rather poorly: The most modern highway in the heart of the country, with constantly revised budgets during its construction, as well as high tolls during its operation, should definitely have a better plan in place, for dealing with such severe weather phenomena.
The delayed response of the mechanisms used to rescue the stranded people and restore the power in several homes, was undoubtedly part of the cause for people’s outrage. The traffic and the police only appeared after many hours, mainly to be publicly viewed in the news outlets, as most of the damage had been done by then.
People in several communities where the power was entirely down for a whole day, had no method of calling for aid and were left to their own devices. The families of older individuals who were stranded at the roads were also furious, finding out that no aid was offered to their older relatives who panicked, and weren’t able-bodied or technologically savvy to take matters into their own hands. Rather than dealing effectively with the issues at hand that were to be expected, government officials and the appropriate authorities seemed to be in a hurry to publicize their efforts of solving the situation and shift responsibility for the disaster elsewhere.
In conclusion, since this is a meteorological event comparable to others that have taken place in Greece in the recent past, it was entirely possible for the parties responsible to have put plans in place beforehand to limit the damage. The government and the agencies in charge failed to appropriately manage the issue both before and after it escalated, bringing out the wrath and loss of faith of the general public as a result.
Moving forward, it is clear that, unless a solid preventative plan is put in place, against any foreseeable weather phenomenon, we will always be unprepared for the escalation of the broader climate catastrophe. But most importantly, the responsible authorities should be willing and capable to put this strategy into action, to react fast, and prevent turning a meteorological event into a nationwide,week-long disaster.
By team Aligned: Agelos Latsi, Elena Alid, Ιωάννα Ταμβάκη
Betty Tsakarestou, Mania Xenou
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